Better Off
by ta1nt3d1uv
Summary: PostCroatoan. Sam has a vision which may lead him to discover Dean and his father's secret, but it may be too late. Complete.
1. Perfect Timing

**Disclaimer**- I don't own Supernatural, or Sam, or Dean, or City Limits Diner (Yes, it's a real place. There are two, and they're both in Michigan.), or...well...anything, except for my own words and this, and vision-girl, and whatever else I deem mine. Get it? Got it? Good.

**

* * *

Better Off**

**_Chapter One: Perfect Timing_**

A girl sat, looking up at him through her chestnut hair, holding an unconscious and bloodied Dean in her arms.

"You have to do it, Sam. You have to help him, he's going to die!"

He looked down into her teary hazel eyes, but said nothing.

"Sam, he's still your big brother--you're still in there, I know you are. Please."

She caught a glimpse of the yellow in his eyes.

"Fine. Not that this will help probably," she pulled a needle out of her nearby purse and drew some of her own blood, and then proceeded to inject Dean with the syringe, her eyes never leaving contact with Sam's.

----

"Sammy! Are you okay? What'd you see?"

"Uh..." Sam attempted to gain his composure again.

"What was it?"

"You were dying...and I could help you, but I wouldn't, or...couldn't. I think I was possessed or something. This girl...she was asking me to help you, and she..." he paused to look at Dean for a moment.

"She what? Was she hot?"

Sam resisted the urge to roll his eyes, "This is serious, Dean. She injected you with her blood, said something about how it may or may not help you..."

"Any clue as to where we can find this girl?" Dean looked up at his brother.

Sam remembered the girl pulling out a napkin with the needle, which read "City Limits Diner, Tecumseh, Michigan."

"Michigan," Sam said thoughtfully.

"Michigan?"

* * *

**Author's Note- **It's short, I know. It's kind of a little prologue, ish. Anyway, I have chapter two and most of three (I think, anyway) done. And what I mean by "I think" is that I may end up writing a lot more. So far, the chapters get somewhat longer as they go. Chapter two is pretty short also, but not as short as this one. Anyway, reviews anyone? 


	2. Neverending Night

**Better Off**

**_Chapter Two: Never-ending Night_**

"Michigan...could it have been anywhere farther?" Dean yawned.

"Maine...or maybe Florida," Sam responded.

"Forgot Alaska," he smirked.

"Hey, we're gonna be passing by Ellen's. We should stop by," Sam folded the map back up and shoved it in the glove compartment.

"And what if Jo is still pissed?"

"So what?"

Dean shrugged, thinking _It'd only make her hotter._

--

Dean and Sam Winchester walked into the Roadhouse, and many heads turned.

"Hey, there. What brings you boys here?" Ellen greeted the two.

"We're on our way to Michigan and you were kinda on the way," Sam smiled.

"Where's Jo?" Dean glanced around.

"Not here..." Ellen said. "So where exactly are you going in Michigan?"

"Uh...Tecumseh," Sam responded.

"I know someone there. Amy's her name. Stop by and see her, she can help with whatever it is you're on your way to do."

Dean looked at his brother and mouthed with a grin, "She."

--

"I thought I told you not to go in that room, Michelle."

The blonde maid, Michelle, closed a door behind her, wrinkles showing around her eyes, "I'm sorry, miss, but I found a book out and I thought I should put it back. I wasn't thinking, and I most certainly didn't mean to upset you."

"Next time you find something, just let me know first please," the brunette, the same one from Sam's vision, brushed her hair out of her face.

"Yes, Miss Roberts."

The girl watched as the maid, who was old enough to be her mother, left the room. She then looked at the book whose cover read that of an old encyclopedia, but she peaked inside the book to uncover a handwritten front page, which read "John Winchester."

_--_

"Here, I think you boys might be needing this--you've got a long drive ahead of you," Ellen handed them two thermoses full of coffee.

"Thanks, Ellen. We really appreciate it," Sam said.

"No problem, Sam...Dean. And I'll be sure to give Amy a call and let her know you're coming."

Dean nodded before he and Sam left the salloon.

They had no idea what they were getting themselves into.

* * *

**Author's Note-** Okay, so it's short again. What do you all think about the length? I have some of chapter three done, and if I end it where I am currently it'll be a bit longer than this. So do you want there to be longer chapters or shorter chapters? If you don't let me know, they'll be whatever I make them and then you won't necessarily be happy. Anyway, I'm thinking I'll update twice a week regularly--although sometimes I won't be able to. So anyway, I need feedback. I have a generalized plan for the story (I'm pretty good with planning things...not so good with sticking to the plan), but it may change. Anyone have ideas on what the plan is? I'll give you a cookie...well, in spirit anyway. 


	3. Trust Issues

**Better Off**

_**Chapter Three:**_ _**Trust Issues**_

"Sammy, wake up. We're here."

"What?"

"Tecumseh. We're actually in Adrian, but according to your map, it's just a couple miles south of Tecumseh."

"You looked at a map?"

Dean glared at his little brother, "So?"

Sam shook his head and laughed at his brother's defensiveness, "Nothing."

--

The brunette girl stood behind the counter putting freshly baked apple pie out while an older woman unlocked the door and changed the sign in the restaurant to read "OPEN."

Within only a few minutes, the first customers of the day arrived--Sam and Dean Winchester. The brunette greeted them. "Two?"

"Uh, yeah," Dean gave her a look-over while she walked them to a booth.

"Can I start you off with drinks?" she handed them two menus.

"Water," said Sam.

"Coke."

"We have Pepsi here, sorry."

"That's fine then," Dean gave her his trademark smirk.

The waitress returned the smile and went back behind the counter.

"The waitress--" Sam began to say, but Dean cut him off.

"Is totally hot."

"Dean, stop it for one second. That's the girl from my vision," he said in a serious tone.

The waitress came back with their drinks, interrupting their conversation.

"Water for you, Sam, and a Pepsi for Dean."

"Wait...what'd you say? You know our names?" Sam said, surprised.

"Yeah...Ellen told me," she said, caught off guard.

Dean realized, "You're Amy."

She laughed, "That I am."

"What's funny about that?" Dean replied, sounding almost hurt.

"Name-tag."

"Right. I knew that..."

"So do you two know what you want to order?"

"Let's start off with some onion rings, then when you come back we can...chat," Dean had to restrain himself from winking at her.

"Alrighty then," she replied.

Sam watched her walk away. He couldn't shake the feeling that there was something odd about her.

"I don't trust her," Sam finally said.

"What? You said yourself that you saw her try to save my life. What's not to trust about that?"

"I know, but I just have this...feeling," Sam paused. "Like there's more to it than that, Dean."

--

"I get off my shift in a couple of hours, here's the address to my house. There is a key taped to the bottom of my mailbox," Amy said, handing a napkin with her address to Dean.

Sam gave her a fake smile, while Dean gave her more of a genuine one. Both of their feelings towards her were quite obvious, but she didn't say anything else.

--

"You don't trust her, yet she trusts us with a key to her house," Dean said, pulling the tape off of the spare key.

Sam just looked at him as they both walked onto the porch.

Dean unlocked the door and the two walked in.

"How does she afford this working as a waitress?" Sam looked around, his suspicions only growing.

Dean glanced over at his brother momentarily, "We'll just have to ask her that when she gets off work. Until then, I'm gonna watch some T.V."

* * *

**Author's Note-** I definately wasn't expecting this much of a response. This story already has nearly as many views as one of my big PotC ones, and more reviews and chapter alerts than some of my other stories too. I'm definately glad that people like it so far. I hope people will like where I'm planning on taking this. Reviews, and constructive criticism, are very much welcome. 


	4. Purpose

**Better Off**

_**Chapter Four: Purpose**_

"Dean!"

"Hmm?" he mumbled, still half-way asleep, as he rolled off the couch. "OW!"

"You should see what I found. Amy has this entire room with all these hunters journals and info on demons and hunters, and believe me...there are a lot of books," Sam sighed.

"And that's a bad thing, why?" Dean got up and turned off the TV, looking at his brother.

"It's just weird, don't you think? And the weirdest part is that she has a replica of Dad's journal. I found it out laying on a table. And all the books have fake bookcovers."

"She probably wanted to know more about us, after Ellen called her. Also, she probably doesn't want people to see a room full of books about demons and stuff. They might think she's a little coo-coo for co-coa puffs."

"Why are you being so..."

"Reasonable?" Dean proposed.

Sam just looked at him, unable to respond.

"Oh...and Sam?" Dean said, just as Sam was about to walk away.

"What?"

"She didn't tell us we couldn't go in there, so I doubt it was some big secret."

Dean turned the TV back on and sat back down on the couch.

"Breaking news, there is yet another Amber Alert. There are now eight children missing in Lenawee county. If you've seen any of these children, please call 9-1-1 immediately," a reporter said as pictures of children flashed on the screen.

"Hm..." Dean said quietly to himself.

--

Dean walked into the kitched, amazed at how comfortable the couch had been all night.

"Hey. Amy made waffles but we ran out of syrup so she went to the store. I told her it'd be better if we didn't wake you up just yet," Sam said, rinsing off a plate.

"Where'd you sleep?"

"Guest room. She came and found me in her library and showed me to the guest room. It wasn't very long after I came and woke you up actually."

"Still don't trust her?"

Sam shook his head, "She was fine with me being in there, like you said, but I still have a weird feeling about this, Dean."

"Well...I'm sure you'll get over it," Dean smirked at his baby brother.

"Get over what?" Amy said as she entered with a bottle of syrup.

"Sammy here had a bad dream," Dean quickly responded, recieving an evil glare from Sam.

--

"A lot of kids have been going missing lately, and I think your demon's involved," Amy leaned forward on her couch.

"What makes you think that?" Sam asked.

"Well, it's just a feeling. But trust me on this."

Sam rolled his eyes at the word 'trust.'

"I agree, I saw it on the news last night and I definately think it's strange," Dean defended her.

Sam got up and stormed out of the living room. Dean followed, but not before giving Amy a look of apology.

"What is up with you? You're not acting like yourself," Dean stopped his brother.

"What's up with _me?_ What's up with YOU? You're siding with some _stranger_ as opposed to your own brother!"

"Sam! This isn't you. You're acting like..."

"Who? Who am I acting like?"

"Me," Dean said, dissappointed.

Sam took a deep breath, calming himself.

"Ever since I had that vision...I've felt different," he admitted.

"Different how?" concern showed in Dean's voice.

"Most hostile...anxious...shaky...irritable...I don't really know how to explain it..."

"Paranoid," Dean nodded.

"I just don't know what's wrong with me," Sam let out a sigh.

"I think that's why you're here," Amy interrupted, making her presence know.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I finally caught up with myself. I only have part of the next chapter written. I'm so excited about this story, you have no idea. I also have some other ideas in the works. I would have more chapters written if I hadn't been stressed about an calculus test I had today (and failed) -- we had a review, but I missed it because I was at some college. Anyway...I plan on writing and updating probably Wednesday. 

I want to say **thank you** to the following people for reading:

RAWRness-x, KatieLB, friendly, Charmedp3123, wcfan, Steam Rolled Harry Potter, Cali, m00-chan, ILoveMyFish, Sam666, SammyJaredfan, cristizepeda, eddy6401, leticia08, Masupo


	5. The Plot Thickens

**Better Off**

_**Chapter Five: The Plot Thickens...**_

"What do you know about my brother?" Dean questioned, his own suspicions arising.

"More than you," she replied. "_Either_ of you."

"What? How? What do you know?" Sam was genuinely confused.

"I'm sorry. I can't tell you. It's not my place, nor was it your fathers, to influence what is meant to be. It's against the rules."

"What rules?" Dean asked angrily.

"The same ones that kept your father from telling you. The same rules that made him make you promise not to tell Sam what he told you. This war, between good and evil, has rules, Dean."

"If you're not able to influence things then how are you supposed to help us?"

Amy was frustrated. She looked at Sam and replied, "I just can't change how things are going to be, no matter how much I want to. I don't really understand myself. But I am supposed to help you. I saw it too. I saw Sam's vision."

"How?" Sam looked at his brother, who returned the gaze.

"I'm like Sam, only not. I know where I stand, and what I'm meant to do. And my ability isn't to see the future, I'm an empath. I feel other people's emotions and Sam's were so strong this time around, that I felt them--and I saw what caused them."

Sam was getting more and more confused.

Sensing Sam's confusion, Amy changed the subject back to the matter at hand, "Anyway," she said, breaking the silence. "I plotted all the spots that the children were last seen at."

They went into the kitchen, where Amy pulled out a map and set it on the counter.

"And? Is there a pattern?" Dean said.

"Uh...you could say that. At first I didn't notice one, so I plotted their homes and a couple other things. I know it's a bit of a stretch..."

Dean and Sam looked long and hard at the map.

"I don't see anything," Dean shrugged.

Amy looked at Sam and handed him a pen.

Sam proceeded to connect the dots, forming some sort of ritualistic symbol.

"How'd you see that, Sammy?" Dean asked.

"My burn."

Dean remembered the fire. He remembered carrying his baby brother out of the house, without ever touching the flames--but somehow Sam had received a burn on his calf. At the time he didn't think anything of it, but when John had come to him in the hospital, he realized that it must have been the demon's mark.

Amy watched Dean's realization and Sam's growing confusion. She couldn't help but feel bad for them.

_They've been through so much, and they're going to go through so much more before this is over..._ she thought.

"So where do you come into all this?" Sam asked.

"I think I'm supposed to help you come to a decision, and hopefully help afterwards too."

"Decision?" Sam inquired.

_I wasn't supposed to say that,_ Amy mentally kicked herself.

"Wait...are you human?" Dean questioned, thinking of his attraction towards her.

"As human as your brother here."

_Is that a yes or a no?_ Both Sam and Dean wondered to themselves.

Amy realized that she shouldn't have continued talking, or answering their questions, and she decided to get back on track.

"Enough chit chat. I'll let you two go relax and digest what I've told you, but we have work to do. I'm going to go figure out where that next kid is going to be from."

Dean waited until Amy was out of sight before speaking quietly to his brother, "You may be somewhat right, Sammy. I don't think she's evil, but I definitely am getting a bad feeling about this."

The brothers found their way back to the living room, where they sat in silence, wondering about their new partner.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Someone want to have the honor of REnaming this chapter? I can't think of a name and don't have time to come up with a good one, and I'm sure that you'd rather me put it up now than wait a week for me to come up with a real title. Anyway, I don't know when I'll get the next chapter up. I have part of it done and the rest is outlined, so it'll be a couple days before it's finished. Maybe I'll put it up on Christmas, _maybe_. 

Anyway, now I have to write a big paper for my psych class. I would have put this up last night but I had to write TWO papers and do a project for my government class, as well as other homework. Luckily, tomorrow is my last day before break.


	6. Location, Location

**Better Off**

**_Chapter Six - Location, Location_**

"There has been somewhat of a spiral effect as to the location of the missing children, and I think I have the next one"  
"Where?" Dean spoke.  
"Actually, it's a nearby park"  
"Kids at a park, go figure," Sam glanced up at Amy.  
"It should take place right after dark, assuming that there's a pattern to the times too. Just in case, we can head out now though"  
Dean nodded.  
-  
Amy leaned against the back of Dean's seat in the Impala, "I trust you two'll let me know if you see something"  
Sam looked at Dean, "Sure"  
There, they waited until sundown.  
"There aren't any kids left, Amy," Dean went to turn the car back on.  
"We can't be sure. We should look around first," she said as they all got out of the car.  
-  
"Hey, look over there. Do I need my eyes checked or is there a person over across the street?" Amy looked back at the Winchesters.  
The brothers walked up closer to the road.  
"I think you're right," Sam said, watching as something began running towards a building in the opposite direction.  
"Still think there aren't any kids left?" Amy glared at Dean.  
He glanced from her to Sam, "Uh, maybe"  
She shook her head and began making her way towards the building, followed closely by Dean and Sam.  
-  
"Kids today," Amy knelt to look closer at something on the ground.  
"What is it?" Dean asked.  
Amy pulled a napkin out of her purse and picked it up, "A needle." She looked around to see if there was a trash can, and when she didn't see one, she placed it in her purse.  
Dean looked at his younger brother with worry on his face, "A needle," he repeated.  
Sam nodded and walked up to the door, "What is this anyway"  
"The old school," Amy said.  
Sam pushed on the door and it opened, "No doubt whoever that was came in here"  
The three walked in and looked straight down the hall, then glanced left and right.  
"Which way should we go?" Dean asked.  
"I don't know," replied Amy before she turned around, "What about you, Sam? Sam"  
Dean looked around, "Where'd he go"  
"I don't know," Amy said, looking frantically for the younger Winchester.  
Sam looked at them confused, "I'm right here"  
Unable to hear or see his brother, Dean looked down the hall to the left, "Maybe he went that way"  
"I didn't go that way, I'm right here. Cut it out, Dean"  
"He'll turn up, I'm sure," Amy followed.  
"Dean!" Sam tried to grab his brothers shoulder, but was shocked.  
Dean turned to Amy, "Was that you"  
"What"  
"Did you shock me"  
Amy gave him a confused look, "No"  
Dean shrugged and continued down the hall.

* * *

**Author's Note-** I got a new computer and I don't have word yet. Everything's being typed on notepad, which sucks. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays and I wish everyone a happy new year. I started the next chapter. I'm very thankful for all of the reviews and such that I have recieved. I'm glad that somebody enjoys reading this story. Anyway, the next chapter is really hard to write, as was part of this chapter. If anything seems confusing, let me know and I'll try to clear that up. It's hard to fit in everything I want too, like facial expressions and such. I can picture it all, but I don't know if I'm doing an okay job of describing it or not. And sorry about the shortness again. The next chapter shall be longer. 


	7. Marco, Polo

**Better Off**

**_Chapter 7-- Marco, Polo_**

"Do you really think he came this way?" Amy turned around as if to go in the other direction.

"I don't know," Dean also turned around, to find Amy gone, "This really isn't funny right now"

Amy turned back, expecting a response, "Dean? Where'd you go"

-

"Amy?" Dean saw a shadow pass across the hallway ahead.

-

Sam looked at Amy and back at Dean, "Hey, she's right there. And I'm here. What the hell is going on? You're just playing a trick on me, right? Haha, good one, Dean. What a very elaborate prank."

-

Amy sighed and sat down, as if she was giving up, until she saw a shadow down the hallway, "Dean? Sam? Is that you"

She began to follow it.

-

Sam followed as Dean and Amy made their separate, yet not so separate, way down the hallway, chasing after a shadow.

-

Dean ended up in front of an large metal door, which opened with ease, "Sammy? Are you in here"

He walked in, and the door closed behind him. Dean looked around to see a dark gymnasium before florescent lights suddenly flickered on.

"Amy? Sam"

-

Amy stood before the large metal door, which was open just a moment before.

She tugged on the handle, but it wouldn't move.

"Hello? Is somebody in there"

-

Sam watched as Amy tried to open the door.

He walked up to it and grabbed onto the handle.

-

Amy suddenly jumped back, startled, when she heard what sounded like a scream, followed by a thump behind the door in front of her.

When she tried to open the door again it opened with ease.

On the floor in front of her lied Dean, bloody. He looked as if he'd been beaten, but she knew it was impossible for him to have gotten hurt that much since she'd seen him only ten minutes before.

"Dean? Can you hear me?" She asked, kneeling beside him.

He mumbled something in response.

She looked over him. He was covered in blood, but there seemed to be no wounds that it was coming from.

_Maybe it's not his_, she thought to herself. _But if this isn't his blood, what's wrong with him?_  
Amy looked around the room, but they were alone.

"Dammit, where's Sam"

She looked up to see him standing in front of the door, also covered in blood.

-

**Author's Note- **A few things. I don't have word count or spellcheck on my new computer yet, and for some reason when I uploaded this some punctuation and such was missing. I might not have caught everything yet. I need to get Microsoft Office. So if something is spelled wrong or isn't grammatically correct, let me know. I wonder if anyone knows where I'm going with this. I'm almost done, which is exciting. On another note, I figured out how to make pretty backgrounds. I made a few backgrounds and such, email me if you'd like to see them (email address is in profile). I go back to school on the 8th, that may effect updates for better or for worse. Sorry if you think the chapter is short, and sorry about the long author's note here. Happy new year everyone! And on another note, I'm putting this chapter up in the morning and if I get a few reviews by the afternoon, I'll put the next chapter up. Otherwise you'll just have to wait until I get around to it. I have the next couple chapters written. Should I make this a longer story or should I tie it up and do a sequel? Or should I just end it in a few chapters? Review and let me know.


	8. Things aren't always what they seem

**Better Off**

_**Chapter Eight--** Things aren't always what they seem_

Amy sat, looking up at Sam through her chestnut hair, cradling Dean in her arms.  
"Sam, I'm so happy to see you. Help me carry Dean outside"  
-  
"You can see me? I'm glad to be seen. What happened to him?" Sam said, kneeling by his brother.  
-  
He stood in the doorway, his face completely emotionless.  
"Sam! Snap out of it, what's wrong with you"  
He took a few steps forward and looked down at his helpless older brother.  
"Sam"  
-  
"What are you talking about?" Sam's eyes followed her gaze to another him.  
He had known this room looked familiar. It was his vision.  
At least now I know it wasn' t really me...but how do I fix this  
-  
Realization hit Amy. She had seen Sam's vision, somehow.  
She thought over why her blood could possibly save Dean. She remembered looking at the copy John Winchester's journal after she'd had that dream, to see if it was possible that it was real.  
Amy remembered something that John had given her, information on the demon that had killed his wife. Information on it's connection to Sam.

Ellen pointed back at a teenage girl at the back of the salloon.  
The girl was startled when the man Ellen had been talking to came over to her.  
"Ellen tells me you're Amy"  
She furrowed her brow, "Yes...and who are you"  
"John Winchester"  
"I've heard of you," she smiled.  
"Really"  
"You've come up in a lot of my research"  
"That's actually why I'm here. She said that you're something special, and you have some big plans someday"  
"Really now"  
"Yeah, and you're collecting information on demons and things. I have some stuff for you, but on one condition"  
"What would that be?" Amy thought of all the possible things he could be thinking.  
"Someday, you'll give it to my sons. My oldest is about your age, Dean"  
"Why don't you just give it to him now"  
"He's not ready yet, and it might change how he looks at his baby brother. Just keep this safe, please," he handed over the journal.  
She took it, but after looking it over, handed it back, "I can't take this"  
He opened it and ripped something out, "Then at least take this part"  
She looked at the torn papers and nodded.

"Blood," she whispered.  
She looked up at Sam, "Your blood can save him"  
He didn't respond.  
"I know you're in there Sam. Sammy. Save your big brother. You have to help him, he's going to die without you"  
Still there was no response from Sam.  
"Sam, he's still your big brother--you're still in there, I know you are. Please"  
He looked down into her teary hazel eyes, but said nothing, while his own eyes flickered yellow.  
She thought to herself, "This doesn't make any sense though...you're not ready yet"  
-  
Sam looked at her, and then at his look-alike, "I know this doesn't make sense, but what am I not ready for"  
He thought about what she'd said, "And why would my blood save him"  
-  
"The timing isn't right. It hasn't started yet"  
She pulled out the syringe, but decidedly threw it across the gym and continued looking through her purse until she found a pocket knife.  
-  
Sam watched as the needle rolled across the floor, "This isn't what I saw...you're changing it"  
-  
"This won't bring Sam back, but it might just save you," Amy said, taking Dean's hand and cutting his palm, and then doing the same to herself before putting her hand in his.

-  
**Author's Note-**  
I don't know why, but I have this big problem with rambling at the end of chapters. So I'm going to try not to do that this time. I'm excited to be so close to the end. It's one in the morning, I really should go to bed, but I'm watching Pirates of the Caribbean 2 right now. I put it in at like 11:30 but it's so long. I wrote this like a week ago, and now I'm putting it online. In case you didn't know, I don't have internet. And I'm getting Word at the moment, how exciting. So I'll know how long everything is before I upload it. Anyway, thanks for reading so far and please leave a review.


	9. What it's like

**Better Off**

_Chapter Nine--What it's like_

Dean watched as his childhood home burst into flames.

He'd dreamt it before, but this time it was much more real. He was sitting on the sidewalk.

Suddenly a child ran out of the house--it was him--carrying a baby.

"Sammy," he whispered to himself.

"You could stop it all right now. Change your future, by changing your past," a woman came up behind him.

Dean turned around, "Excuse me"

"Kill baby Sam, and you'll live happily ever after with your father"

"He's my brother. And you're not real. This is just a dream"

"People never say it's just a dream when it really is a dream. And is he really your brother? Or is that just what you tell yourself?"

"He's my brother," Dean's jaw stiffened. "The brother that I fought with on hunts as a kid, who cried when our dad died. He's my brother"

Dean turned around again, but was surprised when he didn't see the burning house. Instead what he saw was The Roadhouse.

"Go on, go inside," said the same woman as before.

Dean wondered who--or what--she was, but did as she said.

"Wrong place...wrong time?" Jo smiled.

Dean looked at Jo, and himself, "I never liked home movies"

The woman looked at him, her curly red hair accenting the necklace she wore.

He stepped towards her to get a closer look at the pendent on her necklace.

"Familiar?" her voice was sharp.

"You're a demon."

"In the flesh, so to speak."

"Like that's really what you look like. And what the hell are you doing with me."

"Showing you some things. And pretty soon I'm going to show you what you're missing."

"What do you mean?" Dean asked.

The demon shrugged and then vanished into thin air.

"Great." Dean pursed his lips.

"You may now kiss the bride"

Dean turned to see that he was at his brother's wedding.

-

Jo sat next to Dean, "So why aren't you married yet anyway? Haven't you known your girlfriend longer than Sam and whats'erface over there."

"Yeah, but I'm not really the marrying type."

She nodded.

"Where is she?" Jo said with a bit of hope.

"Working"

"Which type of working?"

"The normal kind. We're done with hunting, ever since Sammy almost died"

Dean looked at his future self and saw a light scar on the left side of his face. He felt a cool breeze and looked to see where it came from.

"Dean, dinner's done," he heard a woman's voice.

"I'm coming, just gimme a second," he saw himself looking through papers.

"Dean!"

He blinked and when he opened his eyes again he saw Amy leaning over him, worry in her eyes.

It all came rushing back--he was in a school in Michigan looking for something related to the demon and missing children.

"You're okay," she smiled.

"Why wouldn't I be? Did you find Sam?"

"I came in here and you were bloody...he was just standing there and the next thing I knew he was unconcious. Much like you. If you think you're fine, then help me get Sam out of here."

He nodded.

-

Amy dabbed a washcloth on Dean's forehead to clean off the blood, "Should I wait until Sam wakes up to tell you everything or no."

"Seeing as I don't have patience, just tell me"

"Well, here's what happened. The demon that killed your mother came here and killed the kids to draw you and Sam both here."

"Why?"

"You know that Sam's ability comes from the demon, correct?"

"Well, yeah..."

"Well, I think that whatever the demon has been planning is about to happen, Dean. The demon needed Sam now, and once we were inside the school that other part of Sam took over. "

Dean was speechless, "But...is he himself again?"

"I think so, but I can't be sure. The demon was using an ability much like Sam's...actually, what I believe to be is Sam's evolved ability."

"How-so?"

"Let me finish...I'll get there. The demon was, how do I say this? He was feeding on the children's future. When I thought about the connection between the demon and Sam, I realized that--plus the fact that he was choosing children and not adults, and then I realized that Sam would be immune with his ability to see the future. That means that he would have, for all intent and purpose, a limitless future. And I'm an empath with some sort of connection to Sam, and these abilities our in our blood. So with my blood I saved you."

"Yeah, and you were going to get to the whole evolved ability thing?"

"Oh yeah. Sam's premonitions will probably get much stronger, and you know how they hurt him sometimes?"

Dean nodded.

"Maybe that's to encourage him to draw energy of some sort when he has them, like the demon probably did."

They heard something break in the next room.

"Sammy?" Dean said as he and Amy hurried to see what happened.

They looked around to see that Sam was gone.

-

**Author's Note-**

To those who have reviewed: Thank you! And now I'll respond to some things I've received. I am in the U.S. so any spoilers would be unintentional seeing as I haven't seen ahead of Croatoan...not until Thursday! I'm excited. Anyway, everything should begin to make more sense. This is the last chapter that I have fully written out. The rest should be spell-checked and such too. And I should be getting internet soon.

_LoneTread_-- If/when I get internet on my computer I'll get back to you about being a beta because at the moment I don't have the patience to wait. But if you do find any mistakes or anything you'd like cleared up so far, just let me know.

And that goes to anyone.

_unique rebellion_- I'm not quite sure what you meant by your review.

The next update will be in about a week, so I hope everybody enjoys the new episode on Thursday!


	10. Thicker than Blood

**Better Off**

Chapter Ten: Thicker than Blood

Dean thought of all the possibilities, he couldn't help it. _Does the demon have him? Or did he overhear us and freak out? _Being the older brother, it was in his nature to worry about Sam.

"I have to go find him," Dean walked towards the door, but Amy stopped him.

"Not right now, in the morning. It's late and we don't know if there's anything wrong with you."

"Me? What about Sammy? He's out there alone, or even worse—with the demon."

"Yeah, and not much good you'll do him if there is something wrong. Get some sleep. Just a couple hours, that's all I'm asking. And then you can go look for him, and I'll come with you if you want."

He nodded.

Dean's mind was reeling. He remembered what he had been thinking when he first heard about Sammy's visions.

_I always knew he was connected to the demon somehow…_

He had known that those with psychic abilities were tainted, some with good, some with evil.

However, Dean had never suspected that his brother could be evil. Nor did he understand why people were embedded with these abilities.

He headed back to the spare bedroom that Sam had stayed in the night before without saying anything else to Amy. She hadn't expected him to say anything else. She hadn't even expected him to agree to stay.

- -

Sam awoke in a dark room. He looked around, but couldn't tell where he was.

"Sam," he heard a familiar woman's voice come through the darkness.

He thought for a moment, "Jessica?"

He turned a light on and saw that she was standing by the window.

"What's wrong, Sam? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."

- -

Dean tossed and turned. He couldn't fall asleep, his mind kept wandering to what kind of trouble Sam could be in—or if Sam was still himself. He lay in bed thinking over everything that had happened, from the fire when they were kids, to Jessica's death, to everything that Amy had said.

He should have noticed something sooner. He had been in denial, just as John had been for many years.

Dean realized then that everything that had ever happened was basically because of Sam. Obviously it wasn't really Sam's fault; it was the demon's fault. But the only reason the demon had killed their mother, as well as Jessica, was because of Sam.

And the only thing that stood between Sam and the demon now was Dean.

--

Amy paced the hallway.

_I have to find a way to help them._

After a few minutes, she went into the room full of books and sat down.

She began to look through various books, looking for anything she could about the demon, or psychics.

She already knew that John Winchester's journal had some information about both, but she wanted more than just that.

When she finally came across something, she heard the door open behind her.

--

"You're...dead," Sam spoke quietly.

"What are you talking about?" Jessica smiled at him. "As you can see, I'm not dead. Why would you think that?"

Sam shook his head, "Uh...no reason, I guess."

"Good," she kissed him on the cheek. "Now I don't know about you, but I'm hungry. So come downstairs and I'll make something to eat."

"Yeah, just give me a few minutes and I'll be right down."

He waited until she nodded and left the room, then Sam grabbed his phone and began dialing a familiar number—Dean's.

"I'm sorry. If you've reached this recording in error--" Sam hung up and sighed.

"Who were you trying to call?" he looked up and saw Jessica standing in the doorway.

--

Amy turned around in her seat, "Oh, Dean. I thought I told you to get some sleep."

"What about you? You aren't taking your own advice," he sat down next to her.

"Yeah, well..." she couldn't think of anything to respond with.

"So what are you doing anyway?"

"Just a little research."

"Why do you care so much? I mean...Why are you so eager to help us?" Dean asked.

She shrugged, "When I was a kid I felt drawn to the supernatural. I didn't think much of it, most kids get interested by that stuff. Right? Well, when I got into high school I found that I had an ability. I could read people's emotions. But once again, I didn't think much of it...until I took a road trip my senior year and stopped by the Road House. I met Ellen, and then your father...and ever since I've collected information about all this. I always wondered where this ability came from, and I discovered that people like me are embedded with these abilities by demons and...I know this is going to sound stupid...but demons and angels. We're here to help tip the scales one way or the other."

"Angels?"

She nodded.

"And which of the two is in you?"

"I have a birthmark too...it's right above my knee."

"And?"

"And let me just say I'm on the opposite side of Sam."

--

"I was just trying to call my brother."

"Why?"

"Because he's my brother..." Sam began to walk towards the door.

"He doesn't care about you so why should you care about him?"

"What are you talking about, Jess?"

"He doesn't respect you, and doesn't want you to live your life how you want to. To me, that shows he doesn't care."

"Where's this coming from?"

She took his hands, "I _do_ care about you, and I just want you to know that I support you and your destiny. I dropped everything for you."

Sam got a really confused look on his face.

"If Dean gets a chance, he will ruin everything for you. He'll break the two of us up again. Don't you want to be together? You're going to have to do it, Sam."

"Do what?"

"Kill him."

-----

**Author's Note—**I changed where this story was going (just a little) because 'Hunted' kind of stole my storyline. So anyway, I'm not 100 sure of how long it will be now. I still haven't decided what course to take with this, like to do a sequel or not. But if I don't get more reviews, I'm certainly not going to do a sequel because I have no doubt that I would get even less reviews because only people who read the original ever read sequels. And I got up today for absolutely no reason because it's a snow day. what a waste. And for some reason won't let me add this right now.


	11. To Die or not to Die

**Better Off**

**_Chapter Eleven: To Die or Not to Die_**

"You're not Jessica. She's dead."

"Sam, there was a girl in that fire who you mistook for me, but it wasn't me. I've been looking for you ever since that night," she reached out for his hand.

"Then why do you want me to kill Dean?"

"Because as long as he's around you can't do what has to be done, and you can't be with me."

Sam took her hand, "What needs to be done?"

--

"There's something you're not telling me," Dean said.

"Well, yeah."

"Is it about Sam?" he questioned Amy.

"Look, all the other people like him have dreams where the demon speaks to them...tells them things, and pretty much gets inside their heads to turn them evil. I doubt the demon has been doing that to Sam because, with him growing up a hunter and all, it would have the opposite effect. He would be likely to rebel against the demon. So the demon must have another plan."

Dean gave her a look of anticipation, he knew there was more.

"The others are slowly going missing, and their family and friends are being found butchered. I think they have to sever their ties with humanity. I have no doubt the demon will find another way to make Sam...kill you."

Dean had a completely blank look on his face, "He wouldn't do that."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Dean," she continued. "Does he have any weaknesses? Is there someone who could get to him and maybe convince him to kill you? Dead or alive."

He thought, "Dad? He's been real torn up since his death."

"Anyone else?"

Dean's eyes wandered around the room, "Mom. Jessica. Uh..."

"Jessica?"

"His girlfriend. The demon killed her."

Amy smiled, "Maybe the demon didn't kill her."

"She died just like our mom did..."

"It's worth looking into. Do you know anything else about her? I've got a friend who can help us find out if she's alive...or if there's someone pretending to be her."

--

Sam's eyes seemed cold.

"You have a greater purpose. You're not like your brother," Jessica whispered in his ear. "You're above him, start acting like it! You don't take orders. You have _power_. He doesn't. He's held you back for too long."

Sam nodded.

"He's been barking orders at you since you were a kid. He never understood your lack of respect for John. _His_ father. Not yours. You always knew deep down that you weren't a hunter. You weren't the son of a hunter. You're just like what they were hunting all those years, that's why you hesitated. That's why you wanted something different."

He nodded again.

--

Amy walked back into the room, "Jessica's credit cards have been used at a grocery store in a smallish town where someone fitting her description recently rented a house."

"How'd you know it was her?"

"Because it's not likely that your parents would tell you to kill your brother."

Dean looked down for a second, "Right."

"It'll take less than half an hour to get there if we leave right now."

"As opposed to if we leave later?"

"Traffic will be different," Amy replied.

"Then let's get going."

--

"You know what you have to do," Jessica put her hand on Sam's shoulder.

"Kill Dean," he nodded.

"Good. Don't let him convince you otherwise," she handed him a knife and kissed him on the cheek. "Don't let me down."

------

**Author's Note-**

This took awhile, but that's because I had finals. But I'm sorry, it took me like two weeks I think. I wrote this chapter awhile ago, but I changed my mind a bit so I rewrote it. How do you think this is going to end? I think I know how I'm going to end it. And I have a new story idea that I can start when I finish this. So to keep this short and sweet, reviews are very much welcome.


	12. Antici pation

**Better Off**

**_Chapter Twelve: Antici...pation_**

"What's the house number?" Dean asked Amy.

"9036."

"That should be on the right, so let me know when you see it."

"Already looking, Dean. And it's best if we don't park in front because they'll see."

"Let me worry about that, Amy. You just look for the house."

--

Jessica smiled at Sam, "This is going to hurt a little...but it will help."

She handed him a mug with steam coming out the top.

"What is it?" Sam asked, taking the mug and bringing it up to his lips.

"It's okay, it'll trigger a vision."

That's all Sam needed to hear before swallowing the entire contents of the mug in one breath. Within a minute of drinking the liquid, he was hit with a vision.

_Jessica was sitting on the couch talking to Sam when she heard something get knocked over in the kitchen. She went to see what it was, and found the back door open. She closed and locked it, but when she turned around Dean was within inches of her._

"_You want to take my brother away from me? You're gonna have to kill me first, bitch."_

_She smiled for a second, until she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen. He had stabbed her._

Sam was gasping, "Jessica."

"Yes? What did you see?"

"My brother..."

"Dean?" she asked.

"Yes...he..."

"What did he do, Sam?"

"He killed you," Sam clenched his teeth. "But I won't let him. He won't be able to if I kill him first."

Jessica's lips turned upward into a grin.

--

"We just passed the house."

"Okay, I'll park around the corner. We can sneak in through the back."

"Wait. I have a feeling she's expecting us."

Dean looked over at Amy, "So what do we do?"

"How do you feel about heights?" Amy smiled.

--

The two snuck into the neighbor's yard and Amy began climbing a tree.

"What exactly are you doing?" Dean asked.

"I'm going to climb this tree, and then you will, and then I'll jump and hope to land on that window ledge over there."

"You know you're crazy, right?" Dean watched as Amy made her way up the tree.

"Yep, but so are you, so start climbing," she looked down at him.

--

Jessica sat, uneasy. It was all she could do to keep from pacing the length of the house.

"You seem anxious," Sam looked at her.

"Yeah...I..." she thought for a moment, "I don't feel safe knowing that your brother could walk through that door at any moment and take you away."

"Don't worry; I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know."

--

Amy watched as Dean balanced on the tree branch.

"Hurry up!" he said.

"I have to be sure not to make any noise."

"Well, I'm sure me falling will make more than enough noise."

She rolled her eyes and opened the window.

Dean watched Amy climb through, trying not to look down.

"Jump," she whispered.

Dean looked down and shook his head, "How the hell did you get me to do this..."

He jumped through the window, knocking Amy down and falling to the floor.

"Not afraid of heights, huh?" she looked up at him.

"I might have lied a little," he lifted himself off of her, noticing that she was avoiding eye contact. "Sorry about that."

"Sure you are," Amy stood up and looked around the room.

"Sam's phone," Dean picked a cell phone off of the bed stand.

"Good, at least we've got the right house. Let's go downstairs, and hope he's still himself."

"I'm gonna do more than hope," Dean pulled a gun out of his pants and tossed it to Amy, and then knelt to get one out of his boot.

"Why...aren't you handy?" Amy walked over to the door to hear if anyone was in the hall.

"I have my moments," he cocked the handgun.

Amy heard muffled sounds, "They're downstairs. C'mon."

She slowly opened the door and walked into the hallway.

--

"Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"I'll be right back...do you want some popcorn?" Jessica got up from the couch.

"Uh...no."

She walked into the kitchen.

--

Amy stopped Dean before they got to the stairs.

"You go for Sam, I'll go for Jess," she spoke very softly.

"Okay..." he tried to pass her.

"Wait," she leaned around the corner and glanced down into the living room. "Something's up with Sam..."

Dean couldn't wait any longer, this time when Amy tried to hold him back he pushed her out of the way and rushed down the stairs.

"Sam?" he asked.

Sam looked up, vengeance in his eyes, "Dean."

"What's wrong? What'd she do to you?" he went over to where Sam was sitting on the couch.

"She didn't do anything to me," Sam got up, slowly, without losing eye contact with Dean. He didn't even blink.

"You okay, Sammy?" Dean took a step back.

"He's better than okay," Jessica smiled, wiping blood off of her hands with a dish towel.

_Amy_, Dean thought.

"What'd you do to her?"

"Nothing she didn't deserve."

Sam looked at Jessica with a sudden realization. She caught a sudden glimpse of humanity in his eyes.

"Do it now, Sam!" she ordered.

Dean looked back at his little brother, "Sammy...Sam...c'mon."

Sam stood still, looking back and forth between the two people he loved most in the world.

His gaze finally settled on Dean, "I'm sorry."

* * *

**Author's Note-**

I think the next chapter will be the last, but I'm not sure yet. Gotta love a cliff hanger. Anyone else live in the Midwest? It's been unbelievably cold lately! Seriously, now that winter is supposed to end, it's beginning. Well, it'll probably be another week before you get an update from me. Thanks for reading so far, I'm really excited for this Thursday's episode with the blackouts and such. I think it's gonna be a big one. And I've already started my next story, I'll put it up once I finish with this one. Thanks, and please leave a review.


	13. Ablaze

**Better Off**

**_Chapter thirteen: Ablaze_**

Jessica looked at Sam, "What are you sorry for? After everything he's put you through, he deserves it."

She remained cold and callous as she looked right through Dean.

"No..." Sam looked at her, sharing the same cold look. "I'm not apologizing to Dean. I'm apologizing to you."

Uncertainty covered Jessica's features. She was about to say something, when Sam knocked her to the ground.

"You had me worried there for a second," Dean released a sigh of relief.

"Yeah...go check on Amy, I'll take care of Jess."

Dean nodded and headed towards the kitchen. He stopped before he was in the kitchen and turned around, "Sammy...don't ever worry me like that again."

Sam nodded, and began searching the room for something.

--

Dean looked down across the kitchen, to see Amy lying on the floor in her own blood.

He rushed to her side, seeing no visible wound he sat her up. That's when he felt it.

Jessica had stabbed Amy in her lower back.

Dean immediately began searching the drawers and cabinets for dish towels to stop the bleeding.

"Sam, we have to get Amy to the hospital. She's bleeding pretty bad," Dean shouted into the next room.

Minutes later, after bandaging Amy's wound, Dean became worried. Sam hadn't responded, and he couldn't hear any movement from the living room.

"Sammy? You okay?"

He walked into the next room, where he saw Jessica bound at the wrists and ankles with duct tape over her mouth.

She was awake, giving Dean an evil glare. He noticed as she glanced towards the stairs, giving him a clue as to where his younger brother was.

Hurriedly, Dean went up the stairs to the room that he and Amy broke in through. He found Sam sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a picture of Jessica.

Sam looked up and feigned a smile, "Hey."

"I know this must be hard, but that's not Jessica down there. And even if it is, then she's obviously not who you thought she was."

"I know," Sam's voice was quiet.

"Look, we have to get Amy to the hospital, she's been stabbed...and you need to do whatever it is that you have to do," Dean took the picture out of Sam's hands.

"I know."

"So are you coming or do I have to come back for you after I take Amy to the hospital?"

Sam looked around the room, "Come back. I just want to get some of her stuff together, since I couldn't before...with the fire and all."

"Okay. Promise you'll be here?"

Sam nodded, giving his brother permission to leave.

--

Dean sat in the waiting room, to see how Amy was doing. Despite this, all Dean could think about was his brother.

--

Sam had gathered a paper bag full of old photos. He grabbed his cell phone and looked into the bedroom for the last time. He was finally able to move on from Jessica's death. All he had to do was kill what he hoped to be her imposter. He had a hard time before, since he had nothing tangible to remember her by.

He pulled out a knife and made his way down the stairs to where Jessica was tied up in the living room.

--

A doctor came out, completely void of any emotion.

He looked around the room, seeing an elderly woman, Dean and a mother with her young child. His gaze settled on Dean.

Dean stood and walked over to the doctor, unable to determine whether or not something was wrong.

"I'm Amy's fiancé," Dean said, before the doctor could ask.

He nodded, "I am Dr. Stevens. We've stopped the bleeding, and she's stabilized. She's weak and tired due to the blood loss, but she should be fine before too long. If you'd like to go see her, you may. But she wouldn't really be able to converse at the moment."

"No, thank you," Dean looked towards the exit door. "I'll let her sleep. I have to go tell my brother the good news anyway."

Doctor Stevens smiled at Dean before walking back down the hall he came from.

--

Sam ripped the duct tape from Jessica's mouth.

"Sam...Are you really gonna let your brother control your life?" Jessica looked genuinely hurt.

"I'm certainly not going to let some demon," he looked at the knife in his hands.

"I'm not a demon, I swear."

"You may not be, but you work for one. And that's bad enough." Sam braced himself for what he had to do next.

"Wait! I only did it because I thought I had to in order to be with you. It lied to me...Sam, please. Don't. I'm your Jess."

This stopped him, but only briefly. He knew that evil would deceive in order to protect itself. He knew that he couldn't ever trust her. He knew something bad would happen to him if he did cut her loose.

Sam closed his eyes.

--

Dean had a bad feeling. Speeding from the hospital, it took him under five minutes to get to Jessica's house. But even that felt like too long.

He walked in through the front door. The front door was unlocked.

He pushed the door open and looked around the room. He saw his brother sitting on the floor, holding a bloody knife only a foot away from Jessica's bloodied body.

"I'm so sorry you had to do that," Dean said quietly, not wanting to startle his brother who showed no awareness to his presence.

Sam looked up, "Me too. But it wasn't her. It couldn't have been."

Sam wasn't sure if it was or not, and Dean knew that. But neither said anything, knowing that Sam wouldn't be able to live with himself knowing that he'd just killed the only woman he'd ever loved.

Dean stood, watching his brother, for a few minutes.

Sam broke the silence, "Is Amy okay?"

Dean nodded, "Yeah...the doctor says she'll be fine. She lost a lot of blood, but I got her there just in time."

"I'm glad."

"Hey, we should probably get out of here...how are we going to deal with this? I mean...you did just murder someone..." Dean didn't want to be so blunt, but couldn't help it.

Sam sighed, standing up, "We burn it down."

**Author's Note: **I am going to put up an epilogue. And then this is done. I hope you've enjoyed this thus far. If not, let me know. And I'll apologize for wasting your precious time. And, in fact, my own. Well, now I have to write a paper on how I would improve public schools if I was governor. It'd be nice if you'd leave a review. Thanks.


	14. Epilogue

**Better Off**

_**Epilogue**_

_...Some ambiguous amount of time later..._

Dean sat next to Amy's bed, waiting for her to wake up. He looked at his watch impatiently.

He sighed as his younger brother came into the room.

"She's still asleep?" Sam asked.

"Yeah..."

"Or maybe she's just trying to be," Amy opened her eyes and smiled at the two men.

"Hey...how long have you been awake?" Dean frowned.

"I wasn't counting."

"Well, we oughtta get going. Just thought we'd let you know before we skipped town," Dean stood up. "We'll be seein' you."

She nodded.

Sam looked at Dean, noticing that he was getting antsy. He gave his elder brother a questioning look, which caught Amy's attention.

"What are you two up to?" she inquired.

"Nothing," they both responded at the same time.

"Jinx?" she laughed quietly to herself.

Dean smiled and looked towards the door, "We should get going."

"Right...you already said that." Amy looked back and forth between them.

"I suppose we did...bye Amy," Sam replied.

Sam and Dean then left the room.

"You think she knows?" Dean asked.

Sam stared at him dumbfounded, "Well, Captain Obvious...I think she knows something's up."

He shrugged in response and grabbed her medical record off the nurse's desk while no one was looking.

"What are you doing?" Sam questioned, trying to keep his voice down.

"Just seeing when she's gonna be let out," Dean paused for a second. "Hey...there's something I think you should know."

"Hm?"

"Her name's not Amy...well, not exactly."

"What?" Sam was confused.

"Amilyn," he said matter-of-factly.

Sam laughed, drawing some unwanted attention.

--

"Sire, I have bad news about the Winchester boy," a dark-haired girl spoke softly.

"What would that be?" came a voice in the darkness.

"He killed your servant. Jessica."

"As was expected. That was her purpose."

"What?" the girl was caught off guard.

"He showed that he is capable of murdering even his most beloved. It was a step that needed doing."

"But wouldn't he have done that either way?" she asked.

"Yes. It was a win-win situation."

"But there's still the other Winchester to deal with..."

"I know, but don't worry. All in good time."

_...and more ambiguous amounts of time later..._

Amy was finally released from the hospital. She hadn't been home in quite some time, and couldn't remember the comfort of her own bed.

She pulled the key out of her pocket and unlocked the door. When she found her way inside, she was caught off guard. Sam and Dean were waiting for her—with cake.

"Surprise! We would have invited more people, but we don't know your friends...or anyone really." Dean shrugged.

She smiled, "Thank you. How sweet."

"We try," Sam returned her smile.

"So why'd you stay? Or...come back...or whatever you did?"

"You really helped us out, and we felt bad with you being in the hospital and all," Sam responded.

"Well thank you. Both of you," all three of them made their way to the dining room table.

"No problem. We've already got our next case though...we leave in the morning. But we'll definitely come back," Sam pulled a card out of his jacket. "Sorry, they don't make any 'I almost got you killed, but you pretty much saved my life' cards."

"Yeah...I've been lookin' for some of those myself," she replied.

They didn't say anything else about hunting for the rest of the night, but they were all thinking about it. About everything that had happened.

When Amy saw them off the next morning, she didn't expect to see them again, despite everything they'd said. And despite the feeling that it wasn't over.

**Author's Note-**

So it's finished. Like, finished finished. I may do a sequel, hence the open ending. It's Valentine's Day...so Happy Valentine's Day, although when I put this online it won't be anymore. Also, for everyone who's been experiencing the crazy winter weather that I've been getting—I hope you've enjoyed missing school/work/whatever due to blizzard-type weather, and maybe even actual blizzards if you're one of the lucky ones. (Sarcasm). So I hope you've enjoyed this. If you want a sequel, let me know and I'll keep that in mind. But I have new ideas I'd like to use first. Thank you for reading all of this. Reviews are still nice. Thanks again.


	15. Author's Note

**Author's Note:**

So I'd like to thank everyone for reading _Better Off_. I am now going to begin a sequel, but first I need a title. So, if anybody would like to help me come up with a title for the sequel, your help would be greatly appreciated. Especially since I can't put the story up until I have a title. All I'm going to say right now is that the sequel will focus around what the demon said at the end of _Better Off_. If you help in any way, I will give you credit.

I was going to start it off with a little overview of _Better Off_, but I seem to think too many things are important.

So anyway, if anybody has input on what the title should be, please let me know. You can send me a message, email or even just review this with what you think. Thanks.


End file.
